PenWorks of the Word | Featured Author | Sean Lyon

Worn Sandals and Unfinished People

~~~

I had spent most of my life reading the book of Acts, knowing how the story ends.

Paul is Paul. The church survives. Christianity spreads across the Roman world. Two thousand years later, I can sit comfortably with a Bible in my lap and read about Thessalonica, knowing that the frightened little community described in Acts 17 eventually became part of something that changed human history.

But the people living through it had no such luxury.

That realization eventually became Worn Sandals.

It started with a sermon I listened to that mentioned Jason.

PenWorks of the Word | Featured Author | Richard T. Hicks

My Journey into Freedom Series

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My writing journey began in 2012, although the seeds had been planted many years earlier.

I had been online since 1999, occasionally writing whenever I felt led by the Holy Spirit. I was always searching for ways and opportunities to use the creativity I already knew God had placed within me. At that time, my only online experience had been creating and managing a Yahoo group. When the opportunity to begin blogging presented itself, I eagerly stepped into this new virtual adventure.

PenWorks of the Word Giveaway 2026

Greetings,

✨ The PenWorks of the Word Blog Tour is hosting a King Sumo Giveaway — and you're invited!

🗓 Giveaway Timeline

• Launch:  Tuesday, October 13 at 9:00 AM CST
• Close: Sunday, November 1 at 9:00 AM CST
• Winner Announcement: Saturday, November 7 via email
• Total Winners: Multiple Winners (over 40 chances to win)

PenWorks of the Word | Featured Author | Tracey Thorp

The Case For Rachel

By Tracey Thorp

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I think we owe Rachel a massive apology.

Because I’m not convinced she did the things we’ve spent the last 3,000 years accusing her of.

Somehow, over centuries of retelling her story, assumptions have become facts:

• The Bible tells us Rachel was beautiful, so we decided she was vain.
• The Bible tells us Rachel was infertile, forced to endure the pain of watching her own husband and sister have children together. Then one day she got angry with him, so we decided she was bitter and discontent.
• The Bible tells us Rachel took her father’s household idols, so we decided she worshipped them.
• The Bible tells us Rachel couldn’t stand up during the search for the idols because she had her period, so we decided she was lying.  

But where’s the evidence?

PenWorks of the Word | Featured Author | Jackie McBride

All the Way My Savior Leads Me

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I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them.

~ Isaiah 42:16 ~

AI-generated image

Six-year-old Frances knelt with her beloved grandmother beside the old lady’s rocking chair, praying earnestly for one thing—that she could go to school and learn like other children. Most children would find the request strange, as the refrain that echoes down the centuries is how tedious most kids find school. Frances literally ached for knowledge—she longed for it more than anything else--but she had a serious problem. She was blind.

PenWorks of the Word | Featured Author | Shannon Skåer

 

For the Love of Disaster

Do you enjoy disasters—fire, flood, warfare, or plague—in your hometown?

If you answered no, may I suggest that you haven’t given the question enough thought? 

I, for one, would love a good disaster in my backyard. I think a battle would be my preference. My clever little caveat is that I would only enjoy said disaster if it happened a comfortable century before I was born.

Now you’re nodding your head! 

PenWorks of the Word - Opening Remarks

 

The PenWorks of the Word Blog Tour begins today, and I am grateful to welcome you into this month of shared creativity. Every October, something shifts in the rhythm of our days. The air cools. The pace slows. Our attention sharpens. It becomes easier to notice the quiet work God is doing beneath the surface of our lives. That is the spirit behind this tour. A gathering of writers and readers who believe that Scripture still breathes life into imagination and still shapes the stories we tell.

PenWorks of the Word Blog Tour 2026 - Author Line Up!

Greetings,

I’m thrilled to announce the author lineup for the PenWorks of the Word Blog Tour! Throughout October, we’ll be journeying alongside writers from a variety of genres: Biblical Fiction, Christian Fantasy, Historical Romance/Fiction, and Devotional Content. Posts will be shared here on my ministry website, on my author blog, The Gathering Room, in our Facebook public events, and other platforms, offering glimpses into the hearts and stories of these authors.

A Quick Update for My Readers

I want to take a moment to say a big thank you to all of you who follow along with this ministry blog and read the content I release here. Your support and encouragement mean the world to me!

I am sharing a quick update about the posting schedule. My current series, The Heart Behind the Pen, is going to be placed on hold for the next month or so.

The reason for this short break is that I am currently hard at work behind the scenes finishing up my upcoming book release, A Broken Embrace. Writing a new book takes a lot of time and focus, but I am so excited to share this story with you soon!

If you want to get a peek at what I have been working on and learn more about this project, you can check out my author blog post, Unlocking A Broken Embrace.

Thank you so much for your patience, your kindness, and your enthusiasm for these stories. I cannot wait to bring you fresh content for The Heart Behind the Pen as soon as I wrap up this next phase of the release!

See you in the pages, 

MJE

Finding Joy in Hard Times: A Devotional Thought

 Philemon 1:7 (NIV)

"Your love has given me great joy and encouragement, because you, brother, have refreshed the hearts of the Lord’s people."

~~~ 

Labor Day is often celebrated with backyard barbecues, a day off from the daily routine, and a well-deserved rest from hard work. But behind the long weekend, many of us carry unseen burdens. We carry the weight of demanding jobs, personal struggles, and the quiet exhaustion that comes from navigating a broken world. When we are weary, our natural inclination is to pull inward, protect our energy, and focus solely on our own survival.

The Heart Behind the Pen: Finding Your Creative Voice

 “When I am with Him there, nothing frightens me. But the slightest diversion away from Him is painful to me. Spending time in God’s presence doesn't weaken the body. Leaving the seemingly innocent and permissible pleasure of the world for a time will, on the contrary, give us comfort. The only requirement is that we place our confidence entirely in God. Abandon any other concerns, including any special devotions you’ve undertaken simply as a means to an end.”

~ 3rd Letter, The Practice of the Presence of God (Whitaker House, 1982)

~~~

Discovering Faith-Driven Purpose Through Brother Lawrence 

If I could use the entire letter here, I probably would. The third letter in my copy of this timely little book is just that meaningful to me. Never in my life have words been so plainly stated that I dropped everything to digest them.

When I read this the first time, I wasn’t trying to build a lifelong career out of being a faith-based author or Christian storyteller. My focus wasn’t on creating stories that could possibly stand the test of time; I was trying to figure out who I really was as a person.